The impacts of the US regulatory system on the construction of renewable energy projects is garnering attention from both sides of the aisle in Congress. High-ranking Democrats such as John Podesta have expressed concerns that the permitting process is taking too long and needs to be streamlined to increase the US’s infrastructure for clean energy. This comes as the Biden administration looks to implement ambitious greenhouse gas reductions over the next decade. However, Republicans are looking for ways to increase oil drilling and coal-based production, posing a potential problem for the Democrats’ clean energy agenda. Despite this, interest from both sides shows a willingness from politicians to make a deal surrounding permit facilitation. The permitting process for new projects can take as long as seven years, and experts have pointed out that distributing clean energy would be impossible without expanding America’s infrastructure for renewable energy. Although environmentalism has long been associated with slowing development rather than championing it, President Biden’s “hard-hat environmentalism” aims to shift this trend by outlining fossil fuel shift provisions that would generate blue-collar jobs.
John Podesta, adviser to President Joe Biden and ex-adviser to President Barack Obama, is tasked with unravelling an obstacle to the US's transition to carbon-free electricity – a bureaucratic permitting process for renewable energy projects. Podesta argues that environmentalists will have to accept the need for oil and gas production in the short term, or risk slowing the pace of change. A recent Brookings Institution analysis of federal data found that transmission lines can take up to seven years to be permitted, while natural gas pipelines can take less than half that time. Biden's proposed $1tn infrastructure bill, which has yet to pass through the Senate, includes measures to shorten federal permitting times.
Ukrainian-Americans could have an outsized impact on the 2024 US election due to the dense distribution of their votes in a string of highly competitive areas, according to advocacy groups, strategists and a Reuters analysis of census data. Although there are only roughly one million Americans of Ukrainian heritage, in Pennsylvania and Michigan the Ukrainian-American community outstrips Trump's margin of victory in 2016. Furthermore, in at least 13 congressional districts across the US, it exceeds or roughly matches the margin of victory achieved by either party in the 2022 midterms. Republican Ukrainian-Americans are protesting at the lack of interest by top Republican lawmakers and some potential 2024 White House candidates in Ukraine's conflict with Russia. This is set in "sharp relief" to President Joe Biden's support of Ukraine and its leader Volodymyr Zelenskiy. A Ukraine Crisis Response Committee of Michigan is putting together a guide to recommend voting based on candidates' views on Ukraine.
Nebraska lawmakers have approved new bills aimed at targeting abortion rights and restricting healthcare access for transgender youth. Republicans in the state have passed a bill to ban abortion care at roughly 10 weeks of pregnancy, as well as combining with it legislation designed to limit gender-affirming care. The bills, both of which have been subject to protests by residents and ACLU-linked groups, will now go before Republican Governor Jim Pillen. Other US states have introduced similar bills aimed at limiting the rights of LGBT+ people and restricting access to healthcare.
The 2022 midterm elections in the US produced a significant turnout, with no national trend that produced swings across the board as in past elections, according to a report by the Democratic data analytics firm Catalist. The findings show that there were two elections last year, one in highly contested states such as Wisconsin, Michigan and Georgia (almost certainly to be battlegrounds in the 2024 presidential campaign), and one in states without competitive statewide contests. In contested Senate and governor elections, Democrats received a slightly larger share of the two-party vote than in 2020, with younger voters playing an important role in their success.
However, turnout among black voters fell from past midterms, prompting a debate about whether the decline suggests a growing trend detrimental to Democrats. Overall, Latino support for the party remained consistent, but Cuban Americans in Florida and Mexican Americans in Arizona, among other states in the Southwest, had conflicting voting loyalties. Suburban areas also saw higher turnouts, but Democratic support fell nationwide, apart from in the contested races in the states where presidential elections are decided, where it remained at 54%.
The report highlights the challenges Republicans face with an electorate that is producing higher turnout, which has led to Democratic successes in three straight elections, particularly as some Democratic analysts argue that in the current political era, their party has a superior election machine and stronger coalition. The report suggests the key issues for the 2024 presidential campaign will be the perception of the Republican party pushing an extreme agenda and whether the party is associated with former President Trump, who may become its nominee.
First on CNN: Democratic lawmakers ask Biden to raise issue of jailed Navy officer with Japanese PM
CNN
23-05-20 16:41
US Congressional representatives Alex Padilla and Mike Levin have asked President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to intervene on behalf of US Navy Lieutenant Ridge Alkonis who was jailed for three years by Japan after being involved in a fatal car crash. Alkonis was reportedly suffering from a medical emergency due to acute mountain sickness when the accident took place. The lawmakers said they welcomed steps taken by the Biden-Emanuel administration but criticised inaction on Alkonis' case. His family wants him transferred to the US under European Council’s Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons.
Concerns about the health of U.S. Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein are growing amid revelations this week that she was diagnosed with encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain caused by complications from shingles. Feinstein still managed to cast a couple of votes after returning from a two-month absence last week, but her home-state party seems to be increasingly concerned about her ability to continue to work. As it stands, Feinstein's aides have revealed hardly any information about her medical conditions. However, State Party Progressive Caucus Chairman Amar Shergill told The Washington Post that Feinstein's struggles "during simple conversations with reporters about when she was working and when she wasn't” may suggest she is no longer capable of "representing her constituents in D.C."
Despite growing tensions, there is no indication that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, or California Governor Gavin Newsom, deem it their role to ask Feinstein to step down. If she does, the subsequent appointment will be politically fraught. Newsom, who would make the selection, would need to choose between three Democratic members of the House from California who are vying to replace her: Adam B. Schiff, Katie Porter and Barbara Lee. Newsom is also under pressure to appoint a Black woman, in line with a promise made in 2021 to replace Senator Kamala Harris. Among the key choices are Lee, who was a past chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and is currently the highest-ranking Black woman appointed to Democratic leadership in the House. However, others, including former Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, may be in contention for the role.
US Republican House speaker Kevin McCarthy has said debt ceiling talks “cannot move forward until the president can get back in the country”, referring to Joe Biden’s return from the G7 summit in Japan late on Sunday. The limit on government borrowing must be raised by 1 June or Washington faces an unprecedented default on US debt, which could trigger economic disruption and global market turmoil. Republicans insist on deep spending cuts over 10 years to support such a rise, while Democrats would accept much more limited budgetary cuts over a shorter period.
Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said that Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine has caused China to delay its ambition to invade Taiwan. Speaking at the Financial Times Weekend Festival in Washington, Clinton offered assessments on a range of subjects including Joe Biden’s re-election, US-China relations and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Clinton warned that Donald Trump's re-election in 2024 would “spell the end of democracy” in the US and the “end of Ukraine”. She also described Putin as “complicated, Messianic, narcissistic authoritarian” whose intention was to pull the US out of NATO if Trump won the 2020 presidential election. Clinton added that she no longer believes China’s President Xi will make a move on Taiwan within three or four years as previously expected. Clinton urged voters to judge Biden on his record rather than his age. She also endorsed Biden’s penultimate move to push the Democratic National Committee and overhaul the party’s nominating process in the wake of the 2020 Iowa caucuses marked by delayed results due to a faulty vote-counting app.
Former Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe visited Ukraine on a seven-day fact-finding mission this May. During his visit he traveled close to 1,900 miles travelling by road from Poland to Kyiv, front line regions in the east and south, and back again. He went to raise awareness of the impact of the war on policymakers and business owners in the United States to garner further support for rebuilding and ongoing efforts. McAuliffe, a former Democratic National Committee chairman, claims he was a private citizen travelling freely but the unusual trip attracted considerable attention. While he was there, Russia ramped up strikes on the capital causing air raid sirens to sound on his first night in Kyiv. According to McAuliffe, areas in the east live under a constant threat of attack and he visited families displaced by the war and Ukrainian children who were forcibly taken from their families and moved to Russia. He also met with Ukrainian government officials to discuss strategies for rebuilding.
President Joe Biden and Republican leaders are struggling to reach an agreement to increase the nation’s debt limit, a decision that is quickly approaching. The Republican party is demanding sweeping spending cuts, a move that the Democrats have deemed too severe. However, the two parties have until 1 June to come to a decision before the country is at risk of a catastrophic federal default. Any bargains must gain the approval of both the Republicans and Democrats before they come into force. Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, warned on Friday that such failure would plunge the country into "a Republican-made disaster," destroying the economy.
New York City has a right to shelter, but will it establish a right to sleep outside?
The Toronto Star
23-05-21 04:07
New York City may be establishing a right to sleep in at least some public places if Mayor Eric Adams allows the “Homeless Bill of Rights” to become law. If passed, New York, a city which has for years cleared homeless encampments as they arise, would become the first big US city to establish an explicit right to sleep outside. However, this move runs against the prevailing political headwinds in other places such as Los Angeles, which passed a broad anti-camping measure two years ago. Oregon's "Right to Rest" proposal also died quietly this year after grant the right to use public spaces "without discrimination and time limitations that are based on housing status". New York's Homeless Bill of Rights would also codify the city’s longstanding right to shelter, the only one of its kind among the country’s biggest cities, with nine rights in the measure including safeguards against being forced into facilities that don’t correspond to a person’s gender identity, access to rental assistance and providing parents in shelters with diapers.
Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman is defying strict Senate dress code regulations by wearing gym shorts and hoodies, causing somewhat of a sensation in the chamber. However, his casual dress is said to demonstrate his relaxed and rejuvenated approach following six weeks in inpatient treatment for clinical depression earlier this year. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas is also known for attending in gym clothes, however, Fetterman's signature Carhartt sweatshirts and gym shorts are shaking up convention within the Senate building. His recovery is said to resemble the same person he was before last year when he suffered from a stroke while campaigning for re-election.
President Joe Biden has refused to let Republicans dictate terms for negotiations to raise the US federal debt limit. Speaking in Japan, Biden said the Republican party had to move on the issue and said a US default on its debt, without the ceiling being raised, would have "serious" consequences. He did not rule out using the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution to raise the limit without Congress, but without an agreement this may not be possible before the Treasury Department issues its warning to the government not to over-reach financially by June 1.
Claims that homeless military veterans had been kicked out of hotels in order to make way for migrants arriving in New York were false, according to the Times Union and The Independent. The claims appeared to have been made by the founder of a veteran advocacy group, Sharon Toney-Finch. The accusations were then used by right-wing networks and tabloid media to support claims of a “crisis” at the US and Mexico border. The allegations have brought Toney-Finch, the Yerik Israel Toney Foundation and her own record of military service under scrutiny by state investigators. The foundation says its work helps “homeless and low-income military service veterans in need of living assistance.” Despite Toney-Finch being honoured as a “woman of distinction” and being listed in the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor, The Daily Beast reviewed her records and could not find any evidence that she is a Purple Heart recipient.
US President Joe Biden and Republican Kevin McCarthy are set to meet after a "productive" phone call, signalling a change in tone over negotiations to lift the US debt ceiling. The two sides remain divided over Republican calls for budget cuts in return for the debt ceiling to be raised, and failure to reach an agreement by the end of June could result in a US default on its debt. Biden has cancelled forthcoming foreign visits to deal with the US impasse.
US President Joe Biden should address questions about his health and capacity to govern after his doctors have declared him in good health, according to The Washington Post. The threat of invocation of the 25th amendment, which deals with presidential infirmity, looms in a possible second term, the newspaper warned. Earlier this month, an ABC/Washington Post poll found that 68% of Americans believed Biden was too old for another term. Even though former President Donald Trump remains unpopular with voters, a majority of respondents said he far surpassed Biden in terms of mental acuity and physical health.
Former President Donald Trump is facing further legal troubles as the US National Archives has found records proving that he and his advisers knew they were breaking the rules by taking classified documents to Mar-a-Lago. Sixteen records have been sent to Special Counsel Jack Smith as part of the investigation into whether Trump illegally retained classified documents. Trump is also facing accusations of illegal retention and divulgence of classified information in Ukraine and China, as well as campaign finance violations. He currently faces an investigations by the New York attorney general over false valuations and the misallocation of charitable donations, and a tax fraud investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney's office.
The ex-president’s legal defence effort is now without one of its top attorneys, who has left and blamed Trump’s top aide Boris Epshteyn for being dishonest and unforthcoming in his work to assist Trump’s lawyers with the investigation into illegal retention of classified documents. A subpoena response from former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino and Trump’s former close adviser Steve Bannon that was scheduled for May is expected to provide more details about the Mar-a-Lago situation. Trump described the events of 6 January, when a group of his supporters breached the Capitol building, as a “beautiful day” in a recent CNN town hall, and has suggested that he might run for president again in 2024.
The recent discovery of Trump’s knowledge of broken rules regarding classified documents and past accusations of fraud and campaign finance violations are putting the ex-president under increasing legal pressure. Trump has a range of investigations open against him and his associates, and the loss of one of his top attorneys to his legal defence effort undoubtedly presents a setback.
Republican Senator Tim Scott has launched his presidential bid in South Carolina. He is the only Black Republican senator and made the announcement at his alma mater, Charleston Southern University, after filing with the Federal Election Commission last week. Scott's team hopes he can find a way to stand out in a field led by Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis by leaning into more optimistic rhetoric than his rivals, while emphasising his faith. Scott has rejected teaching of critical race theory, which presents the idea that the nation’s institutions maintain the dominance of white people.
US Republicans and Democrats are still struggling to reach an agreement on a 2024 budget year cap as time runs out to raise the debt ceiling. Republicans have insisted that spending next year should be no higher than current levels, while Democrats have refused to accept deeper cuts proposed by their political counterparts. A budget deal would pave the way for a separate vote on raising the debt ceiling, in order to allow the government to pay bills that have already been incurred, but the parties remain split over work requirements and cutting parts of the Internal Revenue Service to achieve a deal. White House officials have warned that hard-right Republicans are unlikely to endorse any compromise reached.
